Back in 2008, Disney released the movie “WALL-E.” In the film, humans, who have departed Earth on a galactic cruise ship, are so engulfed in their screens that they don’t even know what a real tree looks like any more. Their pathetic lives have become entirely virtual.

Although undoubtedly exaggerated, “WALL-E,” in some sense, was oddly clairvoyant.

Our heavily digital world will likely become even more digital, as VR has been named the answer to many questions around sustainability.

With new “green” initiatives, travel and adventure – things that once made someone interesting and enviable – have been rebranded as selfish and myopic.

Why? Because airplanes and cars allegedly emit harmful emissions and pollutants into the air, and that certainly isn’t in line with the various environmental protection movements gaining momentum across the United States and Europe especially.

“They are trying to get you to now look at traveling the world or the country as a bad thing,” Glenn Becks explains.

He then tells the hypothetical story of Johnny, a boy who was born with wanderlust coursing through his veins. By the time Johnny turned 16, he was already making plans to venture to the moon, much to the dismay of his mother, who had been busy forming plans of her own.

One night, “she sneaks into her son’s bedroom while he’s asleep,” Beck says, “and straps [a VR] headset to him.”

“When he wakes up, he finds himself on the moon, and he never leaves his room again. … Johnny is safe.”

“Isn’t that what adventuring and exploring is all about? Safety?” Glenn mockingly asks.

“Now this sounds insane, but this is exactly where we’re headed.”

This theory can’t be chalked up to mere speculation, either. There are seeds being planted to villainize travel right now.

In response to the Titan submersible tragedy, MSNBC released an article that read: “I think this tragic incident affords us an opportunity–in fact, gives us a mandate–to devise safe ways for people to satisfy their adventurous spirits and educational urges.”

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“As people consider safer ways to explore, I can’t help but think this terrifying scenario is precisely why the concept of the Metaverse, that is a virtual world reachable through a wearable device, will never die.”

“This is where we’re headed,” Glenn responds. “The death of adventure, the death of exploration in exchange for safety.”

“Just put your kid behind a screen or in glasses until they become the people of ‘Wall-E,’” he criticizes.

Glenn wants us all to ask ourselves these questions this July Fourth:

“Are giant corporations in charge? Is government in charge?”

“Are we going to be told what to do and how to do it at all times?”

“How do we have human experiences when we’re in a world of VR?”

“What are we willing to allow tech to replace in our lives?”

“We as America should be asking ourselves this coming holiday: Who are we, where did we come from, and more importantly, where is it we are headed? Is that where we want to go? If not, we should chart a different course,” he concludes.

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